As summer kicks into high gear, it’s a great time to take a road trip, spend more time outdoors, or simply relax in your favorite lounge chair. Listening to one of these popular HR podcasts as you enjoy your favorite summer activities can keep you entertained while also helping you prepare professionally for the busy months ahead.
In the fast-moving world of HR, podcasts are a great way to quickly absorb new information, learn about trends, and stay up to date on the latest in employee engagement, culture, benefits, and everything else an HR professional must know. With the popularity of podcasts on the rise (73% or an estimated 209 million people in the U.S. over the age of 12 are listening to online audio on a monthly basis, up from 68% in 2021), industry creators have responded by producing a plethora of choices.
To help you build the ultimate professional playlist, we’ve narrowed down a list of must-listen-to HR podcasts to our 10 favorites. Each of these podcasts feature the people and perspectives to inspire, motivate, and help prepare you to take on many of the challenges facing the HR profession today.
Listen and Learn With These Popular Podcast Series
- “The Future of Work with Jacob Morgan” – As an expert on leadership, the future of work, employee experience and leadership, Morgan is a bestselling author, sought-after speaker, and founder of The Future of Work University, an online education platform that helps people learn to thrive in a changing work environment. He uses his weekly podcast to share his insights and discuss with other business leaders how the world of work is changing and what that means for all professionals. Learn more at thefutureorganization.com/future-work-podcast.
- “WorkLife with Adam Grant” – A TED original podcast, “WorkLife” explores the science behind making work enjoyable. An organizational psychologist, bestselling author, and Wharton’s top-rated professor, Adam Grant believes work should be worth the time we spend at it (more than a quarter of our lives on average), so he interviews a variety of interesting professionals to understand what makes them tick and to discover their keys to a better work life. From his studio or out in the field, Grant’s interviews provide an immersive look into different careers while ensuring that we’ll never look at our jobs the same way again. Find out more at www.ted.com/podcasts/worklife.
- “The Hennessy Report” – Created by Keystone Partners and hosted by Dave Hennessy, senior vice president of Keystone Partners, “The Hennessy Report” is a free podcast that features in-depth conversations with the leading HR executives in the United States. Throughout the series, HR professionals discuss critical issues and emerging trends in HR and business. Topics have included leadership transparency, DE&I, and talent acquisition. Before each episode, the Northeast HR Association Emerging HR Professionals group submits one question that will then be asked to the guest at the beginning of the podcast. Listeners can submit a question for consideration to the group. Get more information on the podcast and question submittal at www.nehra.com/page/TheHennessyReport.
- Dare to Lead with Brené Brown” – Brown’s latest podcast, based on her book of the same title, aims to help listeners step up, challenge themselves, and become brave leaders. She spent seven years researching what it takes to be courageous in leadership and continues to share what she’s learned through her podcast. “Dare to Lead” is a mix of conversations with change-making leaders and solo episodes from Brown herself diving into complex topics on courage, bravery, and leadership. Learn more at daretolead.brenebrown.com.
- “HBR IdeaCast” – Hosted by Alison Beard and Curt Nickisch, senior editors at the Harvard Business Review, “HBR IdeaCast” brings together leaders in business and management to discuss hot-button issues and topics that affect myriad industries. From HR to marketing and everything in between, this weekly podcast provides eye-opening and intellectual conversations on all things business, including DE&I, AI, entrepreneurship, hybrid work environments, and much more. Check it out at hbr.org/2018/01/podcast-ideacast.
- “HR Happy Hour” – Steve Boese, the co-chair of the HR Technology Conference, and Trish McFarlane, CEO of H3 HR Advisors, host the longest continuously running internet radio show and HR podcast, which first aired in 2009. The show focuses on human resources, management, leadership, and workforce technology. It also tackles tough workplace topics and issues, such as talent management, recruiting, social media, etc., with the help of HR leaders, academics, consultants, authors, and more. Find additional information and resources at www.hrhappyhour.net.
- “Digital HR Leaders with David Green” – As organizations and industries increasingly go digital, so must HR. David Green uses his podcast to help educate HR professionals on preparing for the future of work and the skills they will need to process, produce, and leverage digital information to create business value. To do so, he speaks with numerous HR leaders who are overseeing digital and data-driven transformations in their organizations. Learn more at www.myhrfuture.com/digital-hr-leaders-podcast.
- “Redefining HR” explores the talent side of HR, focusing on people practices, recruiting, culture, employee engagement, and more. The weekly podcast features a conversation between Lars Schmidt, the show’s host and an HR professional with more than 20 years in the field, along with other mavericks, creators, builders, and leaders from a range of industries. They discuss how they developed their teams, what motivates them, and where things can be improved in HR. Through real-life experience, stories, and insights, they tell compelling, must-listen stories. Get more information at amplifytalent.com/redefining-work.
- “Workplace Stories” is a podcast series from RedThread Research on which Chris Pirie of The Learning Futures Group, Dani Johnson, and Stacia Garr lead stimulating conversations with HR thinkers, writers, leaders, and practitioners. Sponsored by Perceptyx and virtual learning platform Class, the latest season of the podcast looks at “Adventures in Hybrid Work” and features conversations with the people at the forefront of the discourse about hybrid work. Readers interested in a recap of key learnings from this season can sign up to the watch video of a webinar recorded on June 29 that covered the key elements of work and technology that talent leaders have focused on, the changes organizations have implemented to accelerate the shift to hybrid, and the impact of hybrid work on frontline workers, DEIB, and retention efforts.
- “HR Leaders with Chris Rainey” is one of the world’s most popular HR podcasts, with over 4 million downloads to date. Rainey talks to CPOs, CHROs, and other industry experts who share their experiences, insights, lessons learned, and ways in which they are shaping the future of work. Recent episodes have covered topics such as hybrid work, supporting employee wellbeing, and the drawbacks of the traditional HR function and featured HR executives from Credit Suisse, Cox Enterprises, IHG Healthcare, and the McLaren Group.
Stay Informed with HR Podcasts
This is an awesome list if you're looking to get ideas flowing, questions answered, and thoughts percolating – but it is by no means exhaustive. Explore these and other podcasts, and always be sure to share what you learn with your teams.
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